Phorage Opening Soon: New Vietnamese Restaurant in Old Chego Space

Ever since Chego closed on Overland and relocated to Chinatown, we've wondered what would take over the strip mall's corner unit. Thankfully, we'll no longer have to rubberneck (much) when we drive by. Perry Cheung soon will open a Vietnamese restaurant called Phorage in the location. Construction is under way and Phorage is tentatively slated for an early July opening.

The menu will reference in part Cheung's experiences as executive sous chef at the critically acclaimed Slanted Door in San Francisco, known for its upscale, contemporary Vietnamese cuisine. Except Cheung intends to strip down the approach. There'll be both beef and chicken pho, and a rotating range of soups. Look for daily specials, such as spicy tuna tartare and five-spice duck confit salad, which will be announced through the restaurant's social media network.

"Each Vietnamese restaurant in Orange County has a different specialty," the chef tells us. "I'm trying to tie all those restaurants together and get a piece of each one that everybody likes."

Cheung plans to transform Chego's former storage space into a private dining room, which can be booked for special occasion multicourse tasting menus. It also will double as a chef residency space, open to visiting chefs interested in setting up temporary shop.

The restaurant will likely serve lunch and dinner on a daily basis, with later hours toward the weekend. You can stay up-to-date on developments through Phorage's Facebook page.

For a peek into the menu at Phorage, Cheung will be cooking with Chris Oh, chef of Seoul Sausage, at This Is Not a Pop-Up over this weekend, from Friday, June 14, to Sunday, June 16. Look for Cheung's spicy tuna tartare on sesame rice crackers and five-spice duck confit salad with roasted figs, alongside Oh's kalbi short ribs with kimchi cheddar cornbread. The tasting menu is $50 per person and reservations can be made on This Is Not a Pop-Up's website.

Correction: A previous version of this story indicated that Cheung was the chef-owner of ROC Kitchen, which is no longer the case. He has left the restaurant.